Bags
– Think Tank Airport International v1
– Billingham Hadley Pro, without the internal dividers but with some small lens pouches and a camera wrap, packed into my check-in luggage
– Manfrotto MBAG80P for light stands and tripod

Here’s most of it packed in. What you don’t see is the diffuser case, which is quite enormous and wouldn’t fit into the picture…

____________

Visit our Teaching Store to up your photographic game – including Photoshop Workflow DVDs and customized Email School of Photography; or go mobile with the Photography Compendium for iPad. You can also get your gear from B&H and Amazon. Prices are the same as normal, however a small portion of your purchase value is referred back to me. Thanks!

Comments

Any reason you choose to go with the 20mm 1.7 vs the 25mm 1.4? I can imagine the obvious answer being size but is that all? Or in a perfect world you would actually love the 25mm if it was just that much smaller? You know what, I’ll retract that statement. I don’t take you for the kind of guy that would settle for size VS beter optics/bokeh (in a some what same focal range). There must be a reason!

It IS size, in this case. I didn’t see the point of having a small camera but losing that portability to a large lens. The optical differences are narrow enough that I can overlook them in favor of portability.

I have to say, I’ve been coming back to your site on a daily basis. I found out about you by doing a google image search while researching some M4/3 lenses. I was trying to pick out well executed shots from the M4/3 world. In the midst of it all I finally found someone I can follow. What’s intriguing about your work is your versatility with different formats. I’m trying to appreciate the world of M4/3 (or you can say photography in general) and I’m doing so though the works of photographers like your self. I am a professional photographer as well, but I never had any formal training. I’m self taught by basically doing what I just described. Nothing beats being taught hands on but our distances makes that near to impossible (I’m from Miami, FL) So I’m hoping that what you have to say about what you do, and how you do it rubs off on me. I’m not looking to copy, but just to undertand the world of photography as you see it through your writings and your photos. So I can appreciate the world around me in a different light. Hopefully, making me a better photographer in the process.

Hi Ming, I wish from you a review of the AF-S Nikkor 28mm f/1.8G which I saw that you got on the Nikon D800E on your primary system.
I am thinking to buy this lens for my Nikon D700 and your opinion is valuable to me. My other alternative is the Zeiss Distagon T* 28mm f/2 ZF.2 which here in Greece aligns double the price of the Nikkor, almost 1200€. Thank you.

I’m pretty sure I can see your Nikon 45mm Pancake too … which will no doubt disappoint some people who think you should re-borrow the Leica 50mm APO-Summicron and use that with the M to F adaptor instead 😉

Which actually gets to my question, which is why the M to F adaptor and the ZM lens ? I assume the combo does Macro only, but you already have the 60mm Macro, so what does the “M” lens on the Nikon give you that the Nikon 60mm doesn’t (is it higher magnification, more field curvature for artistic purposes etc ?)

Haha, I’m sure too. But there’d be no point, because the back flange distance of the F mount is much longer than M mount, and you don’t get infinity focus – the adaptor is strictly for macro work. There also aren’t any 50 APOs here to borrow, sadly. I changed the contents last minute – I just have the 20 and 45 Macro for M4/3, and added the Zeiss ZF.2 85/1.4 and ZF.2 21/2.8.

Ming, In an earlier post you mentioned having a polar bear. Have you trained your polar bear to carry your gear? My polar bear will carry an M9 kit while I use the camera but has refused to carry anything heavier. If you have any suggestions on polar bear management/camera carrying that would be helpful, your comments would be appreciated.

Hi Ming, what is the Leica M to Nikon F adaptor? I didn’t know it was possible to use Leica M lenses on a Nikon F body. What brand is it?
Thanks a lot for your blog, always very informative and with very nice and professional photos.
Fabrizio

Ming, I know that you had focus problems with your D800 and had to send it back but from your experience with that camera and your D800E, have you any thoughts to share with us in comparing the two models? Thank you, very much, as always.

The D800e is definitely sharper; I can close down another stop for my macro work to win back a bit of DOF before getting the same amount of diffraction softening. And if you’re in the pre-diffraction region, then the sharpness is definitely higher…but once again, you need the very best lenses to make the most of it – which is why I’ve changed most of my glass in the last week or so.

I did! Only going to use the OM-D as backup for the assignment; though I did go for a walk this morning around woods with the OM-D, D800E and ZF 21/2.8 and 85/1.5 combination – it’s actually an interesting idea as it gives me 21, 42, 85 and 190mm equivalents…

Hi Ming, thanks for sharing. A couple of questions, how heavy is your carry on bag ended up being with the laptop, camera bodies and lenses? And have you ever though of using the SU-800 commander to trigger?

Thanks for sharing this helpful logistical insight. I’m guessing it’s a horological shoot since you’re bringing the macro big guns (800E), no LED for food photos and to top it off, Switzerland? 🙂 BTW, I didn’t notice an extension tube for your 60mm macro to get closer than 1:1?

Whoa! That’s more than 2:1 on a full frame? I’m trying to guess which client considering you’re packing for bear on this trip so it must be a very important shoot for a very important client at the Swiss HQ. And Basel is finished for the year no?

It’s an independent manufacture actually. Basel is done, but there are still releases and website updates etc ongoing throughout the year. I’m meeting a bunch of other prospectives and an existing client too, but no shooting though. There’s no difference between packing for bear and packing – if it’s a commercial job, that’s what I bring (with lenses varying depending on the specific job). And I’ve got enough extension tubes to get me to about 2.5:1 on full frame 🙂

Dear Ming, do you like performance of the 28 1.8g on d800e? How it campares to the 24 1.4? I shoot weddings quite a lot, and looking for the wide angle prime, because 24-70 doesnt impress me in terms of image quality.

So far, yes – but I haven’t done any exhaustive testing with it. I still think (very quick opinion) that the 2/28 Zeiss has a more charachterful rendering and is slightly sharper, but having AF does make the 28/1.8 G a bit more useful.